Military aircraft pilots must be constantly prepared for ejection from their cockpit due to aircraft failure or combat aircraft disablement. A pilot is ejected prior to a parachute landing; but when ejection is under way, it is important that his arms and legs be restrained thereby preventing them from hitting cockpit structures which might injure him. Means have been provided in the past for performing this operation. However, the mechanisms are rather cumbersome.
A further necessity for the pilot is vertical torso restraint to overcome the effects of momentum which, in certain instances, simulate negative gravity ("G"). The result is the displacement of the pilot toward a cockpit canopy which could cause serious bodily damage. A number of such vertical restraints have been proposed and utilized but generally require complicated hitching after the pilot takes his seat in the cockpit and the reverse unlatching of such restraints after flight has been completed.